Tag Archives: Evander Holyfield

The “reveal” update: Last night the 47-year-old Holyfield (43-10-2, 28 KOs) knocked out 41-year-old Frans Botha with 2:05 left in the eighth round Saturday night. Holyfield (43-10-2) knocked the defending champion down 31 seconds earlier with a right to the old guy’s chin.

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Some professional boxers just refuse to give up- or, perhaps, they can’t afford to.

American heavyweight boxer Evander Holyfield, left in photo, 47, squares off tonight with almost equally aged foe Francois “White Buffalo” Botha, 41, of South Africa at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas. At stake is the WBF heavyweight championship belt- and best, if you want to watch the fight, to pull out the No-Doz.

Holyfield, the former four-time heavyweight champion, apparently, wants to who wants to prove he stills has the skills to be a world champion, even though he last held a belt nearly 10 years ago and has lost two fights in a row.

Holyfield has a professional boxing record of 47 wins with four losses, two draws and 27 KOs.

Botha (47-4-3, 28 KOs), has had a relatively distinguished career as a heavyweight boxer with top contenders, but has fought several world heavyweight champions including Mike Tyson, Shannon Briggs, Axel Schulz, Michael Moorer, Lennox Lewis and Wladimir Klitschko.

Even so, Botha is named the current World Boxing Foundation World Heavyweight Champion. (Although he won the International Boxing Federation World Heavyweight title in the ring the fight was declared a no contest and he was never officially recognized as champion.)

Probably feeling that long-term boxing is not good for the brain cells, Botha had some smarts and turned entrepreneur for a short time, corning the market on some magical champagne glasses. All you had to do was twist the stem and, voila!, the fluted glass supposedly lit up like Grand Central Station at rush hour.

Promoters are literally begging the fight sales light up. By Friday afternoon, only 2,000 tickets had been sold, leaving promoter Crown Boxing, which is paying Holyfield $150,000 plus a pay-per-view percentage, to hope for a large walk-up crowd. Even $25 lower-bowl seats are going unsold.

Holyfield currently has the odds of minus-360, Botha plus-280

If you’re into comedy and want to save gas money, turn on the fight at 8 p.m. (PT) on pay per view (Cable 502, DirecTV, Dish Network) and shell out $29.95.

Recent sightings of a slimmed-down Mike Tyson added fuel to reports of a rumored rematch between Tyson and Evander Holyfield.

Tyson, who hasn’t fought in five years and was known for his paunchy gut as of late, is clearly getting back in shape, losing 50 pounds, according to those who have spotted him taking regular long walks near his Anthem home in Henderson, Nevada.

When Tyson, now 43, lost to Kevin McBride in 2005, it was his third defeat in four bouts over three years.

His arch nemesis, Evander Holyfield, 47, has been cleared for a tentative April 17 fight in Las Vegas against Frans Botha.

Promoter Don King, likely wanting to keep his trump card, is trying to squash news that a Tyson-Holyfield fight reunion is not true.

But while biding his time for this to occur, we’ve learned that the eccentric one will soon star in an Animal Planet series that will feature — are you sitting down? — pigeon racing.

We’ve all known that Tyson has bats aplenty in his belfry, but many probably are not aware that Tyson has apparently also raised pigeons all his life — squab anyone? — but is just now getting into the glamorous world of racing them. (Hopefully, he won’t toss them around in their cages.)

The show is on track to be taped this spring in New York City and will air early next year.

If you’d like to bone up on your knowledge of this parlor sport, Las Vegas Backstage Access suggests visiting the American Racing Pigeon Union Web site, where you will find all you need to know- and probably lots you wish you never read.

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